Page 25 of Devil’s Torture

Instead, Lucifer leans back in his chair and nods once. “Are you sure?”

“I can’t keep hiding this shit anymore, not from my woman.”

“What if she decides to turn you in?”

“I’ll take all the heat if that’s what it comes down to. I’ll say I ran and that there was no club involvement, I was just gone.” I shake my head slowly. “The only way I can gain her trust again is if I’m honest with her. I’ll take whatever consequences there are.”

Lucifer studies me for a long moment before he nods once. “I won’t stop you. She’s owed the truth. All of it,” he says the last part while holding my gaze. Steady. Knowing.

He’s willing to take the consequences for his own choices as well.

I don’t wait. I head straight back to my girls.

Bexley isn’t expecting me and it’s probably a mistake for me to head over without telling her first, but now that I’ve made up my mind about telling her, I can’t wait. It’s selfish of me, I know it is. I don’t really care.

The moment the door swings open after I knock, my breath hitches. Bexley is dressed in leggings and an oversized sweatshirt that I recognize, even ten years later. It was mine once upon a time and Bex loved stealing it from me.

I always grumbled about it, but I never really minded. Seeing her in my clothes was a huge turn on back then. It still is now.

“What are you doing here?” She doesn’t ask the question unkindly, but there’s still wariness in her eyes as she looks at me.

Before I can answer, Dawn is there pushing past her mom. All Bex can do is purse her lips and move out of the way, not that she was given much of a choice.

I’m pulled into their place by our daughter and straight into a whirlwind of room tours, constant talking, and a bedtime story. Even though I suspect she outgrew being read to a long time ago, I don’t mind one bit and readily agree to read more than one.

“These were my favorites,” Dawn tells me softly and my heart melts for her. “Now, I read mostly chapter books,” she looks so proud of herself and then she lowers her voice, “but I still like these.”

She’s doing this for me, giving me a chance to be the dad I would have been if I was around when she was younger. I gently touch the top of her head and tuck her into bed. It feels like a moment I should have had long ago.

I’m just grateful I’m getting it now.

When I make my way back to the living room, my steps are slow. Bexley looks up at me, and her face is a little more open than it has been since I walked back into her life, uninvited and probably more than a little unwelcome.

“Why did you come back tonight, Rune?”

I hate hearing my road name coming from her, but I don’t feel like I can correct her. Not yet at least.

“You deserve to know what happened that night.”

The words hang between us, and I watch her emotionally brace for whatever it is I’m going to tell her. “Why are you going to tell me now?” Her tone is suspicious and it’s not like I can blame her for it. “I’ve asked and you evaded or you just didn’t say anything. Why did you change your mind?”

“Because you deserve to know,” my voice is raspy.

Bexley tilts her head as she asks, “Are you still afraid of how I’ll look at you after?”

The chuckle that comes out of me is self-deprecating and lined with fear, “Terrified.”

“Okay.” She nods and adjusts herself on the couch, as if being more comfortable will make the truth easier to hear.

Silence stretches between us for a long time. I’m not entirely sure where to start, but I know I need to do it.

“That night I overheard some people at the party. They mentioned the name Ron and that he had sold someone.” Bexley’s face pales with my words, but I keep pushing the rest of it past my lips. “They didn’t say your name, but I fucking knew they were talking about you.”

“Ron sold me?” The question comes out of her softly, but there’s an edge of hysteria in her tone; one I completely understand.

“He tried to,” I correct myself, “or he started to. When I went to his place, I heard him on the phone. He hadn’t gotten paid yet and the deal wasn’t done, but he was already boasting about it like he had.” I rub a hand over my face because fuck, this isn’t easy. “I wasn’t going to allow him to do something like that.” I stare into her eyes and tell her the truth. “I killed him.”

Bexley’s mouth falls open and her eyes go big and round. “You,” she breathes out the word and paused before swallowing hard, “you killed him?”